TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan’s digital affairs ministry said it plans to test its Taiwan Digital Identity Wallet (TW DIW) in December, speaking at a Verifiable Credentials workshop on Thursday, per CNA.

Ministry of Digital Affairs Deputy Minister Isabel Hou (侯宜秀) said the project not only involves tech work but also needs buy-in from businesses. Hou said the goal is to create a secure, easy-to-use system for storing and verifying IDs on mobile phones.

According to the ministry, TW DIW allows users to keep their digital credentials safe and pull them up quickly for things like picking up tickets, getting medicine, or signing up for telecom services. It said this could simplify many daily tasks that now require showing physical ID.

Hou said Taiwan’s 2023 entry into the World Wide Web Consortium marked a major step toward globalizing its digital policy. She noted that the move allows Taiwan to join global talks on internet standards and apply the latest ideas in its policies and industries.

Digital tech brings both benefits and risks, especially when it comes to trust, the deputy minister said. She said the ministry is working with experts from different fields to make the project stronger and more reliable.

Hou also said the ministry will keep promoting public–private cooperation, open-source development, and decentralized governance. She added that the ministry’s long-term goal is to build a trustworthy digital ID ecosystem for everyone in Taiwan.

Taiwan Digital Identity Wallet is an app that stores digital credentials such as health cards, driver’s licenses, and citizen certificates. It is not a payment tool or a digital ID card but a secure container that lets users manage and verify their IDs through their phones, PTS reported.